Francis Ng Chun-yu (Chinese: 吳鎮宇; pinyin: Wú Zhènyǔ; born 21 December 1961) is a Hong Kong actor and director.[1] He is known for his roles in the TVB series Old Time Buddy (1997) and Triumph in the Skies (2003), as well as in films such as Bullets Over Summer (1999), The Mission (1999), 2000 AD (2000), Juliet in Love (2000), and Infernal Affairs II (2003).
Francis Ng | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 吳鎮宇 | |||||||||||
_in_May_2019.jpg) Francis Ng | |||||||||||
| Born | 吳志強 21 December 1961 | ||||||||||
| Other names | Francis Ng Chi-keung, Francis Ng Chun-Yu, Francis Wong, Ng Chun-Yung, Wu Zhen-Yu | ||||||||||
| Years active | 1982–present | ||||||||||
| Spouse |
Fiona Wong Lai-ping (m. 2002) | ||||||||||
| Children | 1 | ||||||||||
| Awards | Hong Kong Film Awards – Best Supporting Actor 2000 2000 AD Golden Bauhinia Awards – Best Supporting Actor 2000 2000 AD Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards – Best Actor 1996 Once Upon a Time in Triad Society 1999 Bullets Over Summer 2000 2000 AD Golden Horse Awards – Best Actor 1999 The Mission TVB Anniversary Awards – My Favourite Television Character 2003 Triumph in the Skies | ||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 吳鎮宇 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 吴镇宇 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Early life
editNg was born in Hong Kong to a family with ancestry from Panyu, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. He is the uncle of footballer, Ng Wai Chiu.[2]
Ng revealed in a stand-up comedy, saying that when he was a child he told his mother that his dream was to get a job that does not need any academic qualification, without a fixed working hours and high pay. Then, his mother asked him to become a beggar. So, he went to Wong Tai Sin, a famous temple in Hong Kong, to observe those beggars there. He realised that becoming beggar is too busy and need to perform manual labour, which does not suit his free and unconstrained attitude. Consequently, he gave up and decided to become a movie star because being a movie star fulfilled all the condition he requested.[3]
During that time, the only way to become a movie star was to get into TVB Training Classes, so Ng signed up. After failing thrice entering the training classes, he eventually gave up. He went for a short period Pabbajja for seven days,[4] shaved his head bald. After the event, he decided to try applying for the training classes again and this time he succeeded. He said in an interview that he succeeded because the interviewer thought that he Knew Shaolin Kung Fu due to his bald head.[3]
Television career
editHe graduated from TVB's training classes in 1982 along with Stephen Chow and Tony Leung.[5] He acted in minor roles for the first few years in his television career. Until 1985, he started to involve in a great deal of TV Series, he was very outstanding in playing villainous roles in TV series such as The Price of Growing Up and The Final Combat. Later on, he played as a protagonist in situation comedies such as Everybody Loves Somebody and The Family Squad, which make him gradually disengage from being the stereotypical villain.
His contract with TVB ended in 1993 and he broke into the movie industry. In 1997, he returned to TVB to star a nostalgic comedy series Old Time Buddy with Gallen Lo, Maggie Cheung and Jessica Hsuen, which was one of the highest rating TV series that year. Later in 2003, he was invited back to TVB again to film Triumph in the Skies casting an airline pilot. He was the leading man role of the series, that series was cited as one of the best serial drama in TVB. He also involved in the sequel of the series Triumph in the Skies II which was aired on 15 July 2013.
Film career
editNg entered the movie industry in 1986, and debuted in Midnight Girls. As a newcomer, he was only given minor roles. After becoming a freeman in 1993, he had the chance to be involved in bigger production film such as Flirting Scholar with Stephen Chow and Kung Fu Cult Master with Jet Li.[citation needed]
Ng's turning point in his filming career came in Young and Dangerous (1995), as villain Ugly Kwan, which was so popular that it spun an unofficial spin-off in Once Upon a Time in Triad Society (1996). His output has steadily increased since then. During 1999, he has won the Golden Horse Awards Best Actor for The Mission[6] and the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Best Actor for Bullets Over Summer. In 2002, he also won the Hong Kong Film Awards and Golden Bauhinia Awards Best Supporting Actor for 2000 AD.[7]
Although Hong Kong cinema encountered a downturn in the late 1990s, however Ng still put on at least 10 films per year. Ng also ventured into the arena of directing. He has directed a few movies including 9413 (1998), What is a Good Teacher (2002), Dancing Lion (2003) and Tracing Shadow (2009).[8]
Along with Lau Ching-wan and Anthony Wong, he was named as one of the major three character actors working in the Hong Kong film industry at the 25th Hong Kong International Film Festival.[citation needed]
Other performances
editOther than television series and movies, Ng once was involved in stand-up comedy with Cheung Tat-ming and Dayo Wong in 1998 and 2000.[9]
He provided the voice for Mr. Incredible/Bob Parr in the Cantonese version of Disney and Pixar's The Incredibles.[citation needed]
Others
editIn the Greater China, the Mexican professional football goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa is often regarded as a lookalike of Francis Ng, and therefore bears the nickname "Mexican Francis Ng" (Chinese: 墨西哥吳鎮宇).[10][11]
Filmography
editFilms
editTelevision series
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils | A Buddhist monk | |
| Hương thành lãng tử 香城浪子 | |||
| 1983 | The Old Miao Myth | Guest | |
| The Legend of the Condor Heroes | Guest | ||
| 1984 | The Duke of Mount Deer | Monk | |
| 1985 | Sword Stained with Royal Blood | Luo Liru | |
| The Possessed |
1987 Cheng Sing-Kung 鄭成功 | ||
| 1989 | Deadly Secret | Man Kwai | |
| Everybody Loves Somebody | |||
| Mo Min Kap Sin Fung | |||
| 1990 | The Final Combat | Duen Yuk Lau | |
| 1992 | Land of the Condors 大地飛鷹 | Xiao Fong | |
| Family Squad 卡拉屋企 | |||
| 1997 | Old Time Buddy | Tse Yuen | |
| 1998 | General Fu 福将军 | Zhou Fusheng | |
| 2003 | Triumph in the Skies | Samuel "Sam" Tong | |
| 2005 | The Great Adventure | Fan Sau-mong | |
| Magic Chef | Cheng Fat | ||
| 2008 | Healing Souls 生命有明天 | Qin Huo | |
| 2013 | Triumph in the Skies II | Samuel "Sam" Tong | |
| 2018 | The Trading Floor | Anthony Yip |
Variety show
edit| Year | English title | Chinese title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | China in Classics | 典籍里的中国 | Sun Tzu |
References
edit- ^ "吴镇宇：当导演，我是新人_羊城晚报数字报刊". Ycwb.com. 3 August 2009. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
- ^ "绿城新铁闸自称宅男 吴伟超叔叔竟是影帝吴镇宇-搜狐体育". sports.sohu.com. Archived from the original on 20 August 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
- ^ a b "非常静距离 20101120 -视频在线观看-综艺-爱奇艺". Iqiyi.com. 19 November 2010. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
- ^ "吴镇宇被曝年轻时曾出家 江苏网宽频_中国江苏网". Archived from the original on 12 August 2013.
- ^ [1] Archived 10 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ [2] Archived 3 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "性格影帝吴镇宇". Enjoy.eastday.com. Retrieved 30 December 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Francis Ng profile". IMDb.com. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
- ^ "Francis Ng Chun-Yu (吳鎮宇)". www.lovehkfilm.com. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
- ^ "世界盃2022｜鎮宇幫墨西哥守龍？人有相似撞晒樣!（上）". am730 (in Traditional Chinese). 21 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ "--FILE--Hong Kong actor Francis Ng attends a celebration for the miniseries "The Trading Floor" in Hong Kong, China, 28 June 2018. Francis Ng looks Stock Photo - Alamy". Alamy. 28 June 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ "Francis Ng profile". Chinesemov.com. Retrieved 12 April 2010.
- ^ "Francic Ng".
- ^ "Homeless in Hong Kong: director of Drifting, Jun Li, on film's faithful depiction of life in the margins of society". 13 February 2021. SCMP Hong Kong. 2021-02-13